Tuesday, October 20, 2015

Casual games have become huge in the last few years with Candy Crush Saga alone boasting more than a billion daily plays. But casual games aren't just an invention of the mobile phone age. On this episode of retro gaming podcastPassion for Pixels, we look at casual gaming through our retro tinted lenses.

Thursday, October 15, 2015

WildStar launched last year to generally positive reviews lauding it's artistic style and refinement of MMO mechanics. Despite the critical praise, subscriber numbers steadily declined and ultimately forced developer Carbine to merge all of the players onto a megaserver to ensure population levels high enough to complete content. Megaservers addressed the needs of the existing player base but offered little incentive to attract those on the outside. Finally, after months of rumours and rumblings WildStar took the plunge and switched from a subscriber to a free-to-play model. A lot has changed in the last year and with no barrier to entry, it may be the time for the masses to finally check out WildStar.

Friday, October 9, 2015

EA has opened the final phase of beta testing for Star Wars: Battlefront to the masses and gamers around the world are getting a chance to play a limited selection of the final product. As a huge Star Wars fan, I was elated when EA announced they would be resurrecting the Battlefront series for the modern generation and set time aside so that I could play the beta as soon as the servers went live. After several hours of killing rebel scum, I'm a bit on the fence about whether or not the final product will be worth a purchase; my fan status makes me an easy sale but I wonder if gamers who aren't Star Wars fans will sense the force in this one. If the beta test is anything to go on, I don't think Star Wars: Battlefront will have enough depth to attract hardcore FPS fans though EA shouldn't have any problem mind-tricking their way to hefty sales on the back of a top tier license, upcoming movie release, and looming holiday season.

Wednesday, October 7, 2015

On this episode we cover our vivid memories of buying games when brick and mortar stores were the only option and games didn't have a release date so you had no idea when a title would be in stock.

Also, Tyma reveals why purchasing a Japanese copy of Final Fantasy VIII was a bad idea, Danny tells of how he got ripped off purchasing his first ever game, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 for the Sega Genesis, and Stian is crowned winner of first time video game purchases with his tale of buying a bundle of sweet classics second hand. All this and more, in episode 27 of retro gaming podcastPassion for Pixels.